Mark of the Witch (2014)

Best movie ever!

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Paulie Rojas stars as Jordyn, a delicate young orphan celebrating her 18th birthday. This celebration opens up a journey of apparent demonic possession as Jordyn attempts to learn the truth about the mother who abandoned her all those years ago.The very stylised slow-motion imagery and set-pieces contain some eerie moments, such as glimpses of a hooded figure watching Jordyn as the chemists where she works, but the onslaught of further jaunts into the supernatural threaten to become tediousness because of their determination not to progress the narrative in any way.I love films that strive to do something different to tell a familiar story. I am also very fond of certain 'arthouse' films. 'Mark of the Witch' ticks both of those boxes, but unfortunately soon becomes dull viewing, with a plethora of threatening predictions directed towards Jordyn. Jason Bognacki deserves kudos for his immersive directional skills, and whilst I embrace the fact that arty films such as this dwell more on style than substance, his script for this might have benefitted from a few more actual incidents rather than a relentless see of beautiful looking obfuscation.

I seen this one under the title Mark Of The Witch because marketers still need to ride the witch wave for sales. The film has a young lady celebrating her 18th birthday which begins to set in motion her true destiny of becoming Satan's sorcerer. Dreams and reality are soon blurred as her transition begins.The effects were pretty bad but for a low budget I guess they tried. They were doing some kind of Matrix witchery when everything was slowed down and the witches were fighting each other. The acting wasn't bad for this flick The story was screwed up the way they conveyed it, even worse when we watch five minute intervals of slow motion scenes. Someone had a wonderful vision but I just didn't see it.My other bitch about this witch is it ended after 69 minutes and then 10 minutes of credits. The credits were even done slow motion. Do not bother with this one.

A young woman called Jordyn learns that she may be the spawn of Satan soon after she celebrates her eighteenth birthday. Soon she starts to have strange visions and encounters and becomes embroiled in a world filled with possession and desire as she learns her role in ensuring her family's curse continues........Anybody who is a fan of Argento's work will know all about the wonderful genre that is Giallo horror. Try explaining what it is to someone without coming across as a total snobbish film lover is a whole different kettle of Inferno.Giallo makes the insane sublime, the horrible ever so sexually charged, and after seeing movies such as the aforementioned Inferno, you wonder what on earth you watched, and what kind of mind it sprung from.Mark Of The Witch is a film much like that, beginning in the most uncomfortable way, and not letting up for the proceeding eighty minutes. And then it finishes, without so much as a warning.A mix of The Omen, and the work of Noé and Argento, the film doesn't conform to normality by having your atypical three acts, we follow Jordyn from each bizarre scenario, to the next, and all the while, not any character appears to be what they are.It looks beautiful, to give the film it's biggest compliment and it's Giallo's biggest cliché, it's like looking at a work of art. The camera work is beautiful, adding a depth of mystery and subliminal eroticism to the movie.My only gripe is the scenes between the aunt and the mother are something right from a really bad episode of Buffy. But it only adds to the charm.But it's not for everyone, and I fear that many people will be mislead by the cookie cutter DVD cover for the film that is obviously aimed at the masses rather than the eclectic market it should be aimed at.But who knows, some will find a gem of a movie hidden in there, but I fear that many casual horror fans will dismiss it for being action and scare lite.But it's not always about that. This is about a girl coming of age, and the split personality side of the story is about choosing which path to follow for he rest of your life, the light path, or the dark.After all, there is something pretty life affirming and mystical about your eighteenth birthday, a lot believe that when you turn that age, your life is set,and what you do in the next few weeks will beset in stone for your eternity.It's an amazing achievement of a film, one that will get under your skin for days.

This is a film about a pretty young lady (Jordyn) who was told that her mother died when she was born. She has been brought up with her aunt, and has two friends (whose appearances in the film are as props for the horror rather than as part of any proper plot). Her aunt is a former nun who dies at the start of the film. Jordyn is haunted in various ways after her aunt dies.I struggle to find any upside to this film. There is hardly any plot. The horror starts early on and carries on at almost the same pace throughout. A good horror film has changes of pace. If the horror is continuous, then you don't get that shock that makes you jump up in your seat. There's nothing very original here. Many of the scenes are reminiscent of other films in the horror genre. The attempt to include religion was very clumsy. In addition, ridiculing Christianity feels a bit old-fashioned now. We're not living in the 1960s any more.